The present invention relates to novel electrically conductive polymer complexes, electrically conductive resists, uses thereof and structures fabricated therewith. More particularly, this invention relates to water-soluble, electrically conductive substituted and unsubstituted polymer complexes and their use as, inter alia, electrical discharge layers, resists, discharge layers for electron-beam lithography and SEM (scanning electron microscope) inspection, and as coatings (especially radiation-curable coatings), for electrostatic charge (ESC) and electrostatic discharge (ESD) applications.
In electron-beam lithography using organic resists, which are insulators, there can arise an accumulation of charge during the writing process due to the absence of an adequate conducting path for immediate bleed-off of the electrons. This charging can result in beam pattern displacement deflection, loss of accuracy in pattern-to-pattern-overlay, or in extreme cases a catastrophic discharge of voltage.
Traditionally, suggestions to circumvent this problem have included the use of a discharge layer in the form of a conductor below or above the resist coating. The layer could be in the form of thin evaporated or spattered metal coatings, indium-tin oxide films, or amorphous carbon films produced by chemical vapor deposition processes. Although effective in some contexts, these methods are not universally ideal since the processes involved in their utilization tend to influence negatively the performance of the resist, and in some cases are difficult to remove.
It is also useful to provide materials that can alleviate electrostatic charging (that is, the unwanted accumulation of static electricity which becomes capable of attracting unwanted airborne particles to e.g. cathode ray tube screens and electronic component carriers), and alleviate electrostatic discharge, in which static electricity is suddenly released in a discharge that can distort the performance of electronic devices and even damage or destroy electronic components. A material that can facilitate the application and creation of such materials would be useful.
While polyaniline as described in the literature might be considered a promising candidate to use to solve these needs, the practical use of currently available polyaniline-based systems has been limited due to the fact that solvents such as N-methyl pyrrolidinone are needed for the application and removal. These solvents are known to interfere with some substrate chemistries. In addition, they create interfacial problems and can tend to dissolve certain substrates. Still other selective polyaniline-derived systems are soluble in more benign organic solvents; however, they are known to be difficult to remove once applied. It is also useful to form a conducting resist which provides patterns of conductive lines on a substrate. The steps involved in forming such lines can include depositing a layer, exposing selected portions of the layer to a given radiation (e.g., ultraviolet or visible light, electron beam, X-ray, or ion beam) to create a solubility difference between exposed and unexposed portions, and then removing the more soluble portions so that only the desired pattern remains. This type of technique is often frustrated by the difficulty of removing the unwanted material after it is developed.
The problem of charging in electron-beam methods arise because the resists are insulators. With a conducting resist, which is one aspect of the present invention, charging should not occur and a separate discharge layer should not be needed.
Thus, there remains a need for a polymeric material which can be used in the applications described herein, and which is easily applicable; is chemically inert with respect to the systems with which it is used; is environmentally benign, particularly in not requiring the use of organic solvents which would volatilize into the atmosphere; and which is removable when desired with minimal effort, with minimal harm to the substrate itself.